Feeding habits of Sotalia fluviatilis in the Amazonian Estuary

ABSTRACT. In this paper we present an analysis of the fifty S. fluviatilis feeding habits in the Amazonian Estuary. Animals were bycaught by the artisanal fishing fleet between 1996 and 2001. Feeding habits were analyzed by prey occurrence frequency (%F) and number percentage and stomachs contents preys similarity between marine and freshwater fish species present in the Amazonian Estuary. Thirteen fish species were identified (%F= 86.6), the most significant families were Sciaenidae (32%), Trichiuridae (26%) e Ariidae (16%), and four crustaceans species (%F=26). S. fluviatilis feeding habits did not differ by gender and in general, calves had higher prey diversity than juveniles and adults. The similarity was high (0.89) between estuarine S. fluviatilis feeding habits and the fishes species present in the Amazonian Estuary when the environment is mostly marine. Key words: Sotalia fluviatilis, amazonian estuary, feeding habits of dolphins. RESUMO. Hábitos alimentares de Sotalia fluviatilis no estuário amazônico. Objetivou-se descrever e analisar os hábitos alimentares de 50 golfinhos Sotalia fluviatilis capturados acidentalmente na frota pesqueira artesanal do Estuário Amazônico entre 1996 e 2001. As presas foram identificadas e calculadas a freqüência de ocorrência e numérica